Editors Note. Metal-Rules.com was founded in 1995 as a forward thinking site. Our goal is, and always has been, to support Real Metal. The decision was made that very rarely do we ever go back and review an album from before 1995. Does the world really need another CD review of Master Of Puppets, Number Of The Beast or Screaming For Vengeance? We don’t think so. We have always supported what is happening now.

Starting in January, 2014, as we head towards our 10,000th review and the 20th Anniversary of Metal-Rules.com, we are looking back and filling in a few gaps in the review database. We want to complete the post-1995 review catalogue of some of the bands that we have supported since 1995, when very few, if any website were supporting real Metal. It’s fun to go back and revisit some of these albums that we did not review when they were first released. Enjoy!

Anvil is an all-time classic heavy metal act and one of those guys that Manowar describe into their lyrics: the metal stalwarts. In a period where nu metal, and grunge prevailed and many big and small bands did whetever it takes to follow the new trends, there was another tide of bands where follow the way they have digged in. Anvil was one of the second category bands. The album title means a lot. ABSOLUTELY NO ALTERNATIVE.

This is one of the heaviest albums of their long-year career and the production is a little…tough is the right word. Together with PLUGGED IN PERMANENT, SPEED OF SOUND and PLENTY OF POWER, those four records cover the period from 1996 to 2001, confirming just how prolific Anvil remained even when the rest of the world didn’t give a toss. As anyone who’s seen the documentary would surely testify, this is a band making music for no other reason than the love of doing it.

You always know that Anvil’s music is honest and pure spurting love, passion and heaviness. What do you want more? I hate the fact that this type of band is always flying too far under the radar to reconnect with contemporary fan bases who love shit bands.

Back to the album again, I really like the tongue-in-cheek element in Anvil (“Show Me Your Tits”, “Piss Test”, “Hair Pie”). Love this impish sense of humour. Many fans (and not) would wonder: but what ABSOLUTELY NO ALTERNATIVE also pinpoint is exactly why Anvil fell off the radar in the first place; the quantity of material is admirable but there are too many lapses in quality for this album to be deemed essential.

ABSOLUTELY NO ALTERNATIVE is a good heavy metal album but not their best. Also, that’s the first release with Glenn "Five" Gyorffy on bass replacing Michael Duncan. This album contains true heavy metal songs with thicker, martial feel, a stop/start jerk and keening solos. I come to tell you that if you are a real fan of heavy metal and if you are seeking for the true heroes of this metal scene, Anvil is your destiny. Media and fans are so wrong about them. If there wasn’t Anvil many of the (big bands) would not exist. That’s the truth.